---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There is one kind of charity common…"
description: "\"There is one kind of charity common enough among us... It is that patchwork philanthropy which clothes the ragged, feeds the poor, and heals the sick. ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f4/jamsetji-tata-65454_charity_there-is-one-kind-of-charity-common-enou_583125.jpg"
---

#  There is one kind of charity common enough among us... It…

![“There is one kind of charity common enough among us... It is that patchwork philanthropy which clothes the ragged, feeds the poor, and heals the sick. I am far from decrying the noble spirit which seeks to help a poor or suffering fellow being... &#91;However&#93; what advances a nation or a community is…” quote by Jamsetji Tata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f4/jamsetji-tata-65454_charity_there-is-one-kind-of-charity-common-enou_583125.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f4/jamsetji-tata-65454_charity_there-is-one-kind-of-charity-common-enou_583125.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f4/jamsetji-tata-65454_charity_there-is-one-kind-of-charity-common-enou_583125.jpg)

> “There is one kind of charity common enough among us... It is that patchwork philanthropy which clothes the ragged, feeds the poor, and heals the sick. I am far from decrying the noble spirit which seeks to help a poor or suffering fellow being... \[However\] what advances a nation or a community is not so much to prop up its weakest and most helpless members, but to lift up the best and the most gifted, so as to make them of the greatest service to the country.”

[Jamsetji Tata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamsetji-tata/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The quote argues that societal progress comes more from empowering the talented than merely supporting the needy, while still valuing basic charity.

**In simple terms:** Lift the gifted to serve the nation, not just aid the weak.

Key Takeaway

Focus on nurturing talent for national benefit.

Themes

society progress talent charity nationalism

Mood

reflective critical thoughtful

Type

philosophical analytical inspirational

When to use this quote

- education policy
- business leadership
- public welfare programs
- philanthropic strategy

Key Concepts

human capital meritocracy social responsibility

Questions to Reflect On

- How can we balance aid to the needy with investment in talent?
- What policies ensure both charity and meritocracy thrive?

A Different Perspective

Overemphasis on talent can neglect essential support for the vulnerable.

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[Charity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/charity/) [Clothes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clothes/) [Common](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common/) [Community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community/) [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [Enough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enough/) [Generosity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generosity/) [Gifted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gifted/) [Heal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heal/) [Help Poor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/help-poor/) [Helping](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/helping/) [Helpless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/helpless/) [Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind/) [Kind Charity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind-charity-1988339/) [Members](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/members/) [Noble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/noble/) [Patchwork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patchwork/) [Patchwork Philanthropy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patchwork-philanthropy-4789899/) [Philanthropy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philanthropy/) [Poor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poor/) [Props](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/props/) [Sick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sick/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/) [Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering/)

## Related quotes

> [The best kind of charity is to help those who are willing to help themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-t-barnum/the-best-kind-of-charity-is-to-help-those-who-are-willing-to-help/)

[P. T. Barnum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-t-barnum/)

> [ The proper education of poor children \[is\] the ground-work of almost every other kind of charity… Without this foundation firstlaid, how much kindnessis unavoidably… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-sterne/the-proper-education-of-poor-children-is-the-ground-work-of-almost/)

[Laurence Sterne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-sterne/)

> [Smile is a language that doesn't need to translate, spread it among you, it is a kind of charity that doesn't cost you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carissa-aydaa/smile-is-a-language-that-doesn-t-need-to-translate-spread-it-among/)

[Carissa Aydaa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carissa-aydaa/)

> [We continue to go from crisis to crisis, whether it is electricity or whether it is gas prices. We need comprehensive solutions, not patchwork…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mcclellan/we-continue-to-go-from-crisis-to-crisis-whether-it-is-electricity-or/)

[Scott McClellan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mcclellan/)

> [We lawyers are always curious, always inquisitive, always picking up odds and ends for our patchwork minds, since there is no knowing when and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/we-lawyers-are-always-curious-always-inquisitive-always-picking-up/)

[Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/)

> [It is foolish to be afraid of death. Just think. No more repaired tires on the body vehicle, no more patchwork living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paramahansa-yogananda/it-is-foolish-to-be-afraid-of-death-just-think-no-more-repaired-tires/)

[Paramahansa Yogananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paramahansa-yogananda/)

> [You know, I'm really starting to think the whole world is just a patchwork quilt of crazy little cults, all with their own secret…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sloan/you-know-i-m-really-starting-to-think-the-whole-world-is-just-a/)

[Robin Sloan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sloan/)

> [So there are cakes and pillows and colors galore, but underneath this more obvious patchwork quilt are places like a quiet room where you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/so-there-are-cakes-and-pillows-and-colors-galore-but-underneath-this-2/)

[Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/)

> [For me, the creative process is this giant patchwork of information.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-anderson/for-me-the-creative-process-is-this-giant-patchwork-of-information/)

[Jonathan Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-anderson/)

> [“A plain, brown paper-wrapped package came in the mail recently. Upon opening it, I saw that it was a patchwork quilt about four feet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-l-bailey-jr/a-plain-brown-paper-wrapped-package-came-in-the-mail-recently-upon/)

[Charles L. Bailey Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-l-bailey-jr/)

> [“scraps of love torn and tattered faded, scattered trashed threads of hope frayed and tangled broken, mangled dashed backing, buttons yarn and batting quilted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendelin-van-draanen/scraps-of-love-torn-and-tattered-faded-scattered-trashed-threads-of/)

[Wendelin Van Draanen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendelin-van-draanen/)

> [When you look at how American national freight systems are connected, it's a bit of a patchwork. When you look at how even road…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-foxx/when-you-look-at-how-american-national-freight-systems-are-connected/)

[Anthony Foxx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-foxx/)

> [We do not live an equal life, but one of contrasts and patchwork; now a little joy, then a sorrow, now a sin, then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/we-do-not-live-an-equal-life-but-one-of-contrasts-and-patchwork-now-a/)

[Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/)

> [The patchwork nature of the forms are a reflection of sexuality itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-dederer/the-patchwork-nature-of-the-forms-are-a-reflection-of-sexuality-itself/)

[Claire Dederer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-dederer/)

> [Now I am in the place I call this wide wide Heaven because it includes all my simplest desires but also the most humble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/now-i-am-in-the-place-i-call-this-wide-wide-heaven-because-it/)

[Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/)

## More by Jamsetji Tata

> [Be sure to lay wide streets planted with shady trees, every other of a quick-growing variety. Be sure that there is plenty of space…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamsetji-tata/be-sure-to-lay-wide-streets-planted-with-shady-trees-every-other-of-a/)

[Jamsetji Tata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamsetji-tata/)

> [Freedom without the strength to support it and, if need be, defend it, would be a cruel delusion. And the strength to defend freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamsetji-tata/freedom-without-the-strength-to-support-it-and-if-need-be-defend-it/)

[Jamsetji Tata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamsetji-tata/)

> [In a free enterprise, the community is not just another stakeholder, but is in fact the very purpose of its existence,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamsetji-tata/in-a-free-enterprise-the-community-is-not-just-another-stakeholder/)

[Jamsetji Tata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamsetji-tata/)

[Explore all 4 Jamsetji Tata quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamsetji-tata/)

## More Charity quotes

> [The greatest charity you can contribute to is yourself. Instead of spending a dollar to help feed hungry children, why not spend that dollar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-braff/the-greatest-charity-you-can-contribute-to-is-yourself-instead-of/)

[Zach Braff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-braff/)

> [In this choice of inheritance we have given to our frame of polity the image of a relation in blood; binding up the constitution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/in-this-choice-of-inheritance-we-have-given-to-our-frame-of-polity/)

[Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/)

> [I would have none of that rigid circumspect charity which is never done without scrutiny, and which always mistrusts the truth of the necessities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-baptiste-massillon/i-would-have-none-of-that-rigid-circumspect-charity-which-is-never/)

[Jean Baptiste Massillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-baptiste-massillon/)

> [I'm publicist, patron of nine charities, creative director, food consultant, recipe developer - and mum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-monroe/i-m-publicist-patron-of-nine-charities-creative-director-food/)

[Jack Monroe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-monroe/)

> [The next time you're looking at a charity, don't ask about the rate of their overhead. Ask about the scale of their dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-next-time-you-re-looking-at-a-charity-don-t-ask-about-the-rate-of/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Both fact and logic seem to me to support the view that savings invested in privately owned economic tools of production amount to an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-a-harper/both-fact-and-logic-seem-to-me-to-support-the-view-that-savings/)

[F. A. Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-a-harper/)

> [I shall pray God to send charity into this hideous world, and sympathy for the weak, and love for the unhappy and unfortunate. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/i-shall-pray-god-to-send-charity-into-this-hideous-world-and-sympathy/)

[John Wyndham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/)

> [It is thus only this personal feeling of misery that we get rid of by acts of pity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/it-is-thus-only-this-personal-feeling-of-misery-that-we-get-rid-of-by/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [Considering community support and cost-benefit analysis, I have supported earmarks for projects of high public purpose involving such areas as higher education, alternative energy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-fortenberry/considering-community-support-and-cost-benefit-analysis-i-have/)

[Jeff Fortenberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-fortenberry/)

> [It's always great to be able to give back to the community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikola-vucevic/it-s-always-great-to-be-able-to-give-back-to-the-community/)

[Nikola Vucevic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikola-vucevic/)

> [Slander is a poison which kills charity, both in the slanderer and the one who listens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-of-clairvaux/slander-is-a-poison-which-kills-charity-both-in-the-slanderer-and-the/)

[Bernard of Clairvaux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-of-clairvaux/)

> [I like to give back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-chan/i-like-to-give-back/)

[Jackie Chan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-chan/)

> [We have to restore power to the family, to the neighborhood, and the community with a non-market principle, a principle of equality, of charity,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-brown/we-have-to-restore-power-to-the-family-to-the-neighborhood-and-the/)

[Jerry Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-brown/)

> [“It takes a female to have a baby, It takes a woman to raise a child, It takes a mother to raise them correctly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-l-alder/it-takes-a-female-to-have-a-baby-it-takes-a-woman-to-raise-a-child-it/)

[Shannon L. Alder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-l-alder/)

> [I own about 300 pairs of shoes. When I start to go over 300, I have mini-sales from my closet and give the money…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-london/i-own-about-300-pairs-of-shoes-when-i-start-to-go-over-300-i-have/)

[Stacy London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-london/)

[Browse all 2,477 Charity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/charity/)

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